The Rise of Literary Universes
Why is every romance novel suddenly part of a series? The experts — including author Lucy Score — explain.
The above question has been plaguing me for months. As a reader who prefers standalone romance novels, I don’t often choose to read the subsequent book(s) in a series unless I adore the author or really enjoyed the first book. I guess you could say I’m the type to go far and wide rather than deep — I’d much rather read a book from a new-to-me author than continue with the next book in a series. I’m more excited by literary novelty than comfortable familiarity. Plus, as a writer myself (albeit not a novelist), I’m enamored by the craft; I recognize the challenge and appreciate the effort that goes into building the plot, setting, and characters completely from scratch and then elegantly composing them into a tight 350-page edit with all loose ends tied up by the end. Compared to a fresh execution, a sequel feels like a cop-out: disappointing and flat.
But I suspect I might be one of the rare few who feel this way. After all, this beach read season alone, both Carley Fortune and Ali Hazelwood have dropped follow-up companion books to novels that previously stood alone, while Abby Jimenez released the first book in what will eventually become a series. What’s the deal? Do readers actually want this? Do publishers see the return on investment? Are authors just being lazy by continuing building on worlds they’ve already created? I decided to get to the bottom of it with the help of some experts.
Readers Love Serial Romance
Turns out, romance readers really enjoy works that are part of the same literary universe. Unlike in fantasy and science fiction genres in which the stories rely so much on intricate world building that a trilogy or series make sense to get through the plot, in romance, that’s not necessary. A single book provides plenty of pages to set the stage, introduce the characters, and resolve the conflict. Instead, authors build on the world they’ve introduced through companion novels — books that take place in the same universe, but revolve around different characters, whether those are side characters from the initial book or new ones altogether. We used to see this more with sub-themes like sports, small-town, and college romances, but now companion novels involve all sorts of loosely-connected characters, from coworkers to neighbors.
, who pens the Romancing the Phone newsletter analyzing genre trends in the industry and on BookTok, explains that romance is a genre all about characters, and that romance series allow readers the added pleasure of getting to see those characters across a longer arc. Readers don’t want more of the plot; they want more of the characters. “If I love the first couple in a series, I look forward to little glimpses of their future throughout a series,” she shares, adding that sequel bait for those side characters who should be in love and deserve their own novel keeps her coming back. “I grew up on historical romance series like Bridgerton that gave readers the love story of every member of a family, but I also love series that are about the creation of a found family.” She cites Lucy Parker's London Celebrities series and Cat Sebastian's Midcentury NYC duology as recent favorites, and spent time earlier this year documenting her foray into Lucy Score’s Knockemout series after seeing the author “in every bookstore in America.”
On the other side of the industry, publishers see success with follow-up books. “Series have always performed very well in the romance genre,” notes Cindy Hwang, vice president and editorial director at Berkley. “Once a reader falls in love with a particular world or community, they want to keep returning,” she says, pointing to B.K. Borison’s Lovelight Farms series as a successful example. “It’s that perfect mix of sweet and sexy where readers get hometown and steamy vibes, so it’s no surprise that readers wanted more after the first book.” She adds that long-running series can be intimidating for new readers, so many authors choose to write mini-series, with three, four, or five books because that feels more accessible.
Some of Berkley’s most popular series include Jasmine Guillory’s The Wedding Date series revolving around a large friend group and Helen Hoang’s The Kiss Quotient trilogy centered on the same family.
Authors Enjoy Expanding on an Existing World
To my surprise, authors aren’t just getting bullied by readers and publishers into expanding their existing works. They, too, enjoy building upon their initial stories with subsequent novels. Take Lucy Score — one of my all-time favorite authors and a prolific writer (Alyssa isn’t wrong, Lucy really is in every bookstore) of both standalone books and serial ones. She explains to me that the continuity of a series allows for a level of creative expansiveness that a single book doesn’t.
“With a series, I find I have more room to develop the world,” she says. “Like in my new Story Lake series, the town itself has a character arc that will unfold over all three books. I also love checking in with previous main characters to give readers a glimpse of how they’re doing.”
As an expert sequel baiter, Lucy crafts side characters who take up space in the initial book, doling out just enough set-up to warm readers up to a sequential story. “I create a bible for each book so when I’m working on what I know is a book one, I fill in a lot of detail on the secondary characters and locations to make it easier to write books two and three. I try to tease conflicts and storylines that will unfold in future books.”
Lucy shares that a splashy standalone novel is a great way to lure new readers, while series are the best way to retain those readers, and she enjoys trading off which type of novel she writes to keep her brain creatively challenged.
Romance Series I Recommend
Like I said, I’m not a big serialist, but there have been a few over the years that I’ve enjoyed, in addition to the Knockemout and Lovelight Farm series mentioned above. If you’re a serial romance reader (in both senses of the word), here are some I recommend:
The DNA Duo duology by Christina Lauren is absolutely fantastic and an instance where I enjoyed the second book even more than the first book. The two heroines are best friends, and the supporting character made such an impression on readers in the first book that CoLo decided to give her character her own story. Both books are very romantic and highly swoon-worthy with the perfect amount of low-level angst.
The Bergman Brothers series by Chloe Liese is probably the largest series I’ve kept up with. That’s because each book explores a different trope with characters who are at different life stages and work in different fields. Even though one of the main characters in each story originates from the same family, there is very little overlap and quite a lot of variety. Books one, two, three, and six are the standouts for me.
The Chance of a Lifetime trilogy by Kate Clayborn is cute and easy to read, revolving around a trio of friends who jointly win the lottery and must decide what to do with their windfall. A reliable option if you need a palate cleanser between books or want something mindless to enjoy this summer.
Are you a serial romance reader? If so, which series have you enjoyed? Tell me in the comments!